Kids from the Delray Beach Youth Tennis Foundation take part in a clinic with Coco Gauff at refurbished courts as part of the US Open Legacy Initiative at Pompey Park in Delray Beach. (Manuela Davies, USTA/Courtesy)
Coco Gauff returned to her hometown recently to help christen the newly resurfaced tennis courts at Pompey Park in Delray Beach.
“(Delray Beach) holds a special place in my heart,” said Gauff, who grew up in Delray Beach after moving to South Florida from Atlanta. “I grew up here and it made me who I am.
“I helped call (announce) the games for the American Little League for my grandfather (Eddie Odom), who founded the league,” Gauff said. “Most famously, I remember the times me and my dad spent (training) on these courts. I would like to thank the USTA Legacy Initiative for contributing $3 million to refurbish courts all over the United States. Since 2005, they have refurbished 43,000 courts around the country.”
Coco Gauff said children at the park have the coordinates on their shoes and they are also wearing “Dream Big” T-shirts.
“I strongly believe that if you dream big, you can thrive,” she said. “Tennis has helped motivate me to become better. I’d like to think that I am a part of a strong community, and the community helped me become the player that I am today.”
Coco Guff called the day a “full circle moment.”
She has been taking the tennis world by storm, especially with her 2023 season. At last year’s US Open, Gauff became the youngest American to win the tournament since Serena Williams did in 1999.
She also was the first American to win the title since 2017, when another Florida native, Sloane Stephens, won the women’s singles title. Gauff is among many Florida tennis legends, including Mary Joe Fernandez, Mardy Fish, Andy Roddick, Jim Courier, Chris Evert and others.
Coco Gauff’s hometown courts at Pompey Park, 1101 NW Second St., were resurfaced through the USTA Tennis Venue Services Program. This marks one of many public facilities that will be resurfaced thanks to her win at the US Open. This Delray Beach park is also part of USTA Florida’s Historic Tennis Trail, which was launched to celebrate the organization’s 75th anniversary.
